How I Met Your Mother’s ending left many fans wanting – and others suggesting it was all an April Fool’s joke (Picture: CBS)

This article contains spoilers.

It’s been a long time coming – but, after nine series, fans of How I Met Your Mother have finally found out the answer to that all-important question.

However the last ever episode of the hit sitcom, which aired in the US last night, left many devotees far from happy with what they saw.

The show, which hops backwards and forwards in time as protagonist Ted (Josh Radnor) tells his children the story of how, indeed, he met their mother, revealed in hour-long episode Last Forever exactly how their courtship played out.

And although all initially seemed well as Ted and the Mother – whose name was revealed as Tracy McConnell – fell in love and got married, events took a more tragic turn after it transpired that she had in fact died six years earlier.

All of which paved the way for him – with his kids’ seal of approval – to be reunited with TV anchor Robin (Cobie Smulders), the other love of his life, presenting her with a blue French horn as the series drew to a close.

It wasn’t happy ever after for Ted and the Mother – aka Tracy McConnell – after all (Picture: CBS)

Except – judging by the Twitter reaction – a vast swathe of the show’s fan base weren’t at all pleased that after nine years of loyal viewing this was all they got: